The Four Most Interesting Things People Do with Bitcoin

Bitcoin has been in the news a lot lately, mainly thanks to the stunning way that its price has shot up to new record highs over and over again. Yet, despite all of the exciting headlines about this digital currency, many people still don’t really understand what you can do with it.
Of course, you can pay for things using bitcoin but that is far from all that it is useful for. Indeed, the four following points are arguably a lot more interesting than just paying for goods and services in this way.

Invest in It

The way that the value of bitcoin has rocketed means that it has turned out to be a spectacular success for many investors who got in during the early days. Indeed, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange tweeted in October 2017 that he had made a 50,000% return since 2010.

Many other investors have also made a fortune, as it has risen from being virtually worthless on release in 2009 to a single bitcoin being worth over $8,000 (£6,000) at the time of writing. Opinion is divided over how far it will keep climbing in the future but well-known cryptocurrency advocates such as Mike Novogratz and Thomas Lee believe that the high price mark still hasn’t been reached.

Try and Beat Inflation

The arrival of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin has given an intriguing option for people living in countries with high inflation rates. When prices are shooting upwards virtually every day, using a digital currency can offer protection against this.

Two of the best examples of this modern trend come in Argentina and Venezuela. Here, crippling inflation rates and volatile currencies have encouraged many locals to spend bitcoins instead of pesos or bolívars. Of course, this approach relies upon the virtual currency remaining stable or improving against the local currency.

Play Games

Another use for bitcoin that not everyone is aware of is playing games online. While you might have thought of serious stuff such as investing or mundane matters like buying groceries, this is another interesting option worth taking into account.

It is now possible to play casino games on sites where you can deposit, play, and withdraw using bitcoin. For example, the new appearance of Bitcasino gives players the chance to play on over 1,300 games using this digital currency in a fully regulated online casino – the first of its kind.

Get Round the Scarcity of Paper Currency

A final use for cryptocurrencies is to get around the scarcity of paper currency. In this case, it could be that the country’s legal currency is in short supply, meaning that it is a struggle to buy things even if you have money in a bank account.

A prime example of how bitcoin can help in this situation comes from Zimbabwe. A shortage of US dollars and a high inflation rate combined in this African country to send people rushing to use bitcoin instead, leading to a big surge in the value of this currency.